Overhaul 2: The TuneUp
by Serenanna
Summary: Part 3 of an ongoing series. When one realization leads to another. No pieces of automail were harmed in the production of this additionally dirtier piece of . . . well . . . EdxWinry, Lemon, Creative Use of Automail


Overhaul 2: The Tune-Up

A Full Metal Alchemist fanfiction, By Serenanna

Warnings and Disclaimers: I don't own Full Metal Alchemist or any of the characters. I'm just borrowing them to play with. I'll return them later after, promise. There is adult content and sexual situations in this story. So, if you're under 18, leave now before your virgin eyes are scarred forever, if you're over 18, enjoy! There is mild bondage in this fic, along with spanking, masturbation with toys, and creative uses of pieces of metal. If those hentai thoughts aren't enough to ward you off, hang on for the ride.

Story Notes: Time frame for this fic doesn't matter as my knowledge of FMA is a bit scattered but obviously before the ending and Maes's death, and set during the anime series. Also, this is a Winry and Ed fic. Being this is fanfiction, liberties were taken with the actions of the characters and certain parts of the fic are not canonal, mostly dealing with the automail. Since not much is written about the technology, I'm winging my own interpretation on how it all works and what it's capable of. Also I don't know the layout of the Rockbell house at all except for the obvious, so I'm winging that too. This fic hinges on very little plot compared to the last time out in Overhaul, which I recommend reading, or A Betting Crowd, which isn't necessary to read but is still damned good. This one is also more hentai. No, really. There's also more angst/drama by the end, as well as no actual intercourse. Yes, really, hentai with no intercourse. Beta reading has been done by Darkilluser. (Thank you!) Read the above disclaimers again if you're still squeamish about reading this, but I assure you, it'll be worth it probably. Again, no pieces of automail were harmed in the production of this additionally dirtier piece of smut . . . well . . .

* * *

Edward Elric's inevitable arrival at the Rockbell house was always a hurricane, even before his life-altering encounter with the girl he was currently desperate to see. Apparently, he'd never heard of calling ahead before, and never put in his infrequent letters when to expect their visits so the women could get the parts together. This time was decidedly much different. He'd not only started writing letters again, almost obsessively, but he even called. That took more courage than Winry could ever know, as he had to use Lieutenant Colonel Hughes's phone without everyone in Central knowing whom he was calling and why. At least it wouldn't be too much of a problem once he could afford his own phone, and could now use Lieutenant Hawkeye's as well. He was true to his word, arriving back at the house exactly three months, give or take a week, just like he had promised. And in the name of 'routine maintenance' of all things. That was all her idea. Winry certainly did have a sense of humor, as he was starting to realize.

Ed had left his poor brother in the dust after the train ride from Central, which seemed more arduous that normal, and bounced up the steps of the Rockbell house in record time. Al would be fine, he reassured himself, steadying the pack full of alchemy books on his shoulders. Well, never completely fine till his body was back, but something had changed mildly in Edward. He was starting to realize that the younger Elric cared for the both of them long enough that Al would be fine on his own once in a while. He didn't even complain when Ed ran off, no shouts of 'Brother!', probably because he knew where he was going. Even if he didn't like to admit it, he realized slowly how much his brother also cared for his sanity and happiness, which until three months ago seemed to be lacking in his life. That brought up the second change in him, his desire for something else.

For at least a few days every three months, the young alchemist wanted to do something completely selfish. The waiting had been hard after that one week, only growing more so the longer it dragged on. Edward spent most of his day frustrated and brooding as he still wrestled with the newness of it all. He had snapped at anyone that mentioned Winry, as if to deny his constant thoughts of her, and his paranoia that they could all read too much into his actions if he did anything but deny and deny. He even snapped at Al a few times, which was almost unforgivable of him to do, but then again he seemed to understand. His brother just assumed it was his short temper flaring and not something else lingering. If only he knew, but then again, part of him didn't want his brother to know.

The nights were even worse when they came. He'd lay in his bunk in the dorms, or in different beds while out on assignment, unable to sleep for part of the night. His thoughts always drifted back to Winry before he fell asleep, always running between kicking himself for not realizing how she was there all along, to counting the days before they were back in Rizembool. But in his darkest moments, he agonized over telling her that one day, eventually, he might not be coming back. Every step in his search for the truth behind that blasted stone made him more and more certain that their future together wasn't guaranteed. He'd known that for a while . . . but back then she hadn't been in his life as much. And now, suddenly, she was. Winry had to have known already though. She always seemed to know everything, or at least found out on her own. They just hadn't talked about it.

That was why he stood paralyzed at the door to the Rockbell house, his metal hand hovering just over the doorknob, unable to turn it. "Damnit," he cursed under his breath, clunking his head on the door instead, "Is being happy for even a little while too much to ask for?"

"Edward?" he heard Pinako's voice from within the kitchen and cringed, "For goodness sake, stop banging on my door and come in."

Steeling himself up, the alchemist opened the door and walk in. The house never seemed to change each time they visited, cheerfully bright no matter what season or time of day. Even in the night, he swore that the yellow paint on the exterior must have been absorbing the sunlight. Pinako Rockbell was at the table, absorbed in drinking her normal cup of tea with her pipe lying nearby. But behind her glasses, Ed could see that he was being watched as he tried to causally walk around the kitchen. There was something about the old woman's glare on the back of his red overcoat that made him uncomfortable. The alchemist suddenly wondered how much she knew about what he's done with and to her granddaughter. Her cup clinked onto the saucer, and he froze, the answer to his wondering being that Mrs. Rockbell knew just about everything. "Good to see you again so soon, Edward," she said, "Winry's in the work room, she's expecting you . . ."

The hairs on the back of his neck rose up slightly, pulling his braid with it. He didn't know what was more shocking, her words or her implied tones. There wasn't a wrench in sight at least. His mind fumbled for a response, but he wisely kept his mouth shut when she spoke again, "Some new rules for your visit this time, I hope you don't mind too much."

"Ah-err, no ma'am," Ed stumbled for a response, his golden eyes wide.

"First off, I should say that I do not care what you and Winry choose to do with yourselves so long as work gets done as well, but I do not want to see it, so please keep such activities to the workroom or one of the bedrooms, preferably my granddaughter's since I don't clean in there. Second, if you break rule one, at least clean up after yourselves regardless. I don't want to find misplaced garments in unusual places," Pinako said as Edward gawked then turned bright red much to her amusement, "And thirdly, I've taken the liberty giving my daughter certain herbal medicines to make sure there're no consequences to your activities. It's not fool proof, but short of replacing your anatomy, or keeping you both separated, both of which she'd objected to, it'll do. Now . . . have I made myself clear, young man?"

"Err- no, I mean, yes, um, yes ma'am," he stumbled again, only turning redder as Pinako chuckled. This was turning out better than she imagined after the phone call from Central. She did like the Elric brothers, and knew eventually that this would happen, but . . . well, it did feel good to turn the screws on the eldest, figuratively. She took another sip of her tea, holding it close over her lips, "I take it Alphonse will be arriving soon?"

"Um, yes, he should be. There were problems retrieving my luggage . . ."

"He doesn't know then?"

"No . . . he doesn't," Ed said as he lowered his head, knowing she was referring to his relationship with Winry. Pinako nodded, placing the tea down. That was for the best, she thought as she reached for her pipe, fiddling with the tobacco. The youngest Elric, the more innocent of the two, probably couldn't handle the knowledge that his brother and childhood best friend were now far more than mere friends. Ed stood motionless, thinking over that very thing. He hadn't considered Al at all, not that his brother knew anything about girls anyway. That thought didn't cheer him up in the slightest, since he was partially responsible for Al's lack of a body to know anything about girls with. Pinako frowned as Edward was lost in his thoughts, again. She cleared her throat and that got his attention well enough, "I believe you have an appointment?"

Somehow the young alchemist stood rooted to the spot. The old woman's eyes narrowed, "Edward, workroom, now. Leave Alphonse to me. He'll be too preoccupied to notice."

"Yes ma'am," Edward said, as that seemed to set his feet into motion. He beat a hasty retreat from the kitchen towards the back of the house. Pinako slowly exhaled, grateful. At least this visit the worst she had to endure were overly-amorous teenagers and not flying tools. But, suddenly, there was a loud clang of metal followed by a dull clunk against wood, and she sighed. The urge to buy newer, lighter tools for that workroom was back, again.

* * *

Den was the first person to know there was someone coming down the hall, as his head rose up from Winry's lap and pointed towards the workroom door. The mechanic looked up too, nearly dropping the rotator cuff she was working on, getting yet another squirt of oil on her denim shorts for her clumsiness. It had to be him. She didn't expect the train to be in at Rizembool station that early after the phone call, a blush blooming across her cheeks. Why was she blushing now, given his last visit? Maybe it was the fact that she spent the last three months with a dull pain in her heart and a growing ache between her legs to match, one that she couldn't scratch alone. Well, it was part of it missing him. She loved him too, of course but . . . there was something more missing. Somewhere between Pinako's lecture, the new medicine she got with it, and her newfound lack of virginity, Winry Rockbell had started to miss more of the young alchemist than just his presence.

She hated going to bed each night without him. Somehow she'd gotten used to Ed's body next to hers after just one week together. He had managed to crawl into her bed each night, but how he did it with a missing leg and arm the first two nights was beyond her. The nights felt so much colder without him, even in summer. That was also when the dreams had started. They were simple enough to start with, just the two of them together, but as each progressive night came, they turned more and more, well, erotic. She knew something was up when she dreamed of tying Edward Elric to her workbench and having her way with him. It was the first fantasy of that type to stick with her as soon as she woke up, and also one that demanded to be replayed in her head. Tying up Ed never seemed like a good idea before, but now that it was in her head, Winry couldn't look at the workroom without turning bright red. After three more nights of similar dreams, she knew she had to do something or go insane before the three months were up. And she knew exactly what she had to do.

She'd only teased Edward about it after their first time, but the more she thought about it, the more she knew that she needed it, an automail substitute for him. It was easy to make too, except for the sculpting of the metal, which she had to do from memory. At least she was sure she got the size right. The wiring and miniature hydraulics were simple compared to the larger automail she worked on, liquid proofing the metal was easy too, and it ran on a battery pack. It was at least three-quarters of the way close to the real, live thing, which made the metallic copy of Edward Elric's member her new best friend. Winry was so proud of it that she even inscribed her name at the base, giving her a sense of ownership. He was hers now, even if it was in metal. But . . . it still wasn't the real Ed. No one and no thing could replace Edward Elric, ever. It had, although, kept her sane these past three weeks, calm enough not to jump him at the sound of the feet pounding towards her door and the soft hiss of automail. Suddenly, she was grateful that she kept it in a drawer in her bedroom. If he ever found it, she could only imagine his reaction.

Den got up and padded over towards the door as it opened, a familiar blond young man walking half way into the room. A smile spread over Winry's face as he bent over to pet the dog. She licked the alchemist's cheek in return of the scratch behind the ear, tail wagging so happily that it knocked over a part lying around. Ed chuckled, petting her dog more as he didn't seem to notice the mechanic at all from her spot behind the workbench. The smile on her face slowly slipped into a frown as she was obviously forgotten in favor of the dog. She loved playing with Den too, but, damnit! He was supposed to notice her! Well, there was one way to get his attention. She grabbed a wrench and threw it across the room, hitting the door next to Edward's head with a dull clunk. Startled, Den bounded right through his legs and out the door, knocking the alchemist over in his wake. He hit the floor with a groan, staying there as he winced, "Hello to you too."

She stood up from the bench and slowly walked over as his groaning got more dramatic. A frown still marred the blonde's lips as she bent over his prone form. It served him right, the thought slowly bring a smirk to Winry's face. Ed stopped wincing and looked at her, slowly grinning. Something crossed her blue eyes and she couldn't help it any longer. She dropped to her knees, wrapping her arms around Ed's neck in a tight hug. The same thing must have crossed his mind as he was halfway sitting up before being locked in her embrace. Not that he would ever complain about being hugged by her. Her eyes slid closed as she felt his arms enfold then tighten over her waist and back. "Welcome home," she said softly, whispering the words.

It was good to be home. Edward's arms held her close, pulling back only to smile in return as his forehead pressed against hers. His golden eyes were closed. He'd been waiting three months for this as he leaned in, gently brushing his lips against Winry's before sliding a hand up the back of her neck and into her hair. She moaned softly and the kiss deepened, her mouth opening to the gentle intrusion of his tongue. He was being restrained, the mechanic realized, too restrained for her liking as her lips fought back. Using her height over him to her advantage, she pressed into him till it forced his head back, hardening the kiss. Edward was too far gone in the blonde's lips to notice the slip in control, pulling her down with him as he slowly toppled over. Once his back hit the floor, his passion kicked in as his mouth fought with hers, gripping her shirt desperately.

Gasping for breath, Winry pulled away, knowing they were going too fast. She lightly kissed his lips while trying to get a grip on her urge to shed her clothes. As eager as she was, rolling around on the floor wasn't that appealing. She was about to get up, but Ed's arms refused to move, holding the blonde pinned to his chest. Moments later, she was looking up at him, her back on the wooden boards. So much for not rolling around on the floor. The workroom door slammed shut with a bang, kicked in by Ed hard enough to probably ring through the entire house. Apparently he didn't care as his lips descended on hers again, pulling away a moment to breathe in her ear, "I didn't tell you to stop."

She gasped, but gave in as the alchemist knelt over her, their bodies a tangle of limbs. His kisses were getting better all the time, she could tell. They were slowly emptying of the bitter desperation that seemed to fill his everyday life till all that was left was raw need and craving. He had been passionate before, but not like this. If she didn't know better, she'd say that there was a hint of happiness lingering in the aftertaste of his mouth. Edward, genuinely happy with after so long? Who would have thought? But . . . would he always be this passionate with her without that desperation to hold onto some form of happiness that used to cloud over his life?

Winry didn't know, nor did she care. All she cared about as his tongue plundered her mouth was that his kisses remained this sweet and this fiery. And lasted this long, she thought, as she practically had to breathe through her ears to keep up. Her bare toes curled as his hand slipped into the open front of her shirt, loosening the tie over her high waist that held it closed. His gloved hands touched her bare back, and she arched off of the floor, brushing against him.

The mechanic retaliated by weaving her hands through his overcoat and jacket only to dive towards the back of his pants. As soon as her fingers gripped a cheek of his butt, Ed's hips thrust into hers as if on reflex. He finally pulled away from her mouth and groaned, something hazy in his golden eyes as he nuzzled her cheek and ear. A devilish grin spread over Winry's face when he wasn't looking, feeling his arousal through the fabric of his pants even if it wasn't painfully obvious yet. But with another rough grope of his rear and a grind of her hips, it was getting there. Suddenly, Ed grabbed her wrists, pinning her to the floor as she squirmed from the shock. His voice slid over her ear, stopping her struggling, "You are very tempting, you know that?"

"I didn't tell you to stop," she replied, the grin widening as he groaned and pulled away, sitting up. Damn, just when she was beginning to like the idea of rolling around on the floor too. Winry pouted, sliding out from under him as he pulled off the heavy pack from his shoulders. In a moment of sheer stupidity and laziness, he tossed it behind her at one of the more packed storage racks. He just had to aim for one of the more unstable ones too. She paled as it wobbled dangerously, one of the boxes tilting towards them, "Oh shit."

The mechanic girl dove for it when it leaned too much, only to get pushed out of the way by Edward instead. Winry hit the floor, watching helplessly as the alchemist's hands tipped it over when he missed catching it. She shrieked as the box opened, showering them both with parts. The world seemed to stop once the rain of metal odd and ends had finished. Slowly, she got out from under the weight and saw the box covering his head. Somehow, that wasn't punishment enough for his carelessness. "Edward!" Winry screamed in fury as she lunged at him, sending bits of metal flying.

The box sailed through the air when she landed on top of him. The dazed look in his eyes in the wake of the accident was gone, shaken from him violently. Ed cringed and yelled as the back of his head pounded on the floor, "Careful! Ah! Not so hard!"

Winry let him go, opting instead to yank on his braid as his head snapped back, "I don't believe you! Always have to be the damned hero! I could have handled it, but no! Now my workroom is trashed!"

"Sorry?" Ed whimpered, trying to figure out some way to pacify her while he still had a scalp, "How was I to know your rack was uneven?"

As soon as the words were out of his mouth, the alchemist started chuckling, holding back the laughter as much as he could. It took Winry a moment to realize the double meaning, and when she did, her hands flailed across Ed's body as she sat on him. "You're horrible! Absolutely horrible!" she screamed at him, not minding if her hands were slapping metal or flesh.

He couldn't keep it in him anymore, laughing out loud as he tried to roll away from her blows, fending them off with his arms, "Stop! That wasn't what I meant!"

Winry huffed, and didn't let up, determined to take out her aggression somehow. It felt better hitting him, even if it was more in mock anger. If she was really pissed at him, he'd know it with a wrench to the head. Ed realized this too as he calmed down enough to just grin, then suddenly grabbed her wrists. She yelped as she was flipped on her back again, looking up at him as he pinned her. "I'm sorry," he said, the apology ruined by the grin he couldn't suppress, "But you know I didn't mean it like that, I kind of like your rack."

She bucked under him, snorting in indignation at the crack. The blonde blushed too, which made Ed chuckle till he suddenly stopped. Something crossed his golden eyes as he started to duck his head towards hers. Winry stiffened, turning away before his lips could brush hers, their intended target. "Um, maybe you should go put your stuff in my room while I clean up," she said as the logical part of her head finally took over before her hormones did, "We can, um, play later, after I take a look at your automail."

Ed groaned, but gave in as he rolled off of her, the metal parts shifting around them. She won, for now at least, and in honesty, he was starting to like it more now that she didn't make it too easy on him, the anticipation building. But then he finally caught on to what she wanted him to do. "You want me to put my things in your room?" the alchemist asked, his tone and arched eyebrows emphasizing the possessive pronouns on each part of the sentence.

His things in her room.

That brought the stupidest grin ever to Edward's face just thinking about it. Winry, on the other hand, wasn't amused. "I meant what I said, I don't think Al will notice since you don't sleep in the same room, and you'll be sneaking in to my room in the middle of the night whether I want you to or not, so we might as well make it easier," she explained as she started picking up the bits of metal parts before smirking at him, "But if you're going to act like that, maybe you'd be better on your own."

"Ah, um, no, I think we'll do things your way, for now," Ed capitulated, scrambling to his feet before she changed her mind again. The pale blonde giggled, shaking her head as she went back to cleaning while he grabbed his pack and was out the door. Once outside of the workroom and away from the clattering of the parts, he noticed something about the house. It was quiet, too quiet as he crept down the hall. Pinako was no longer in the kitchen, nor was her pipe, but his suitcase, which he'd left with Al, was by the door. He guessed the old woman was keeping his brother busy after all. Ed shrugged and grabbed the luggage to trudge it up to Winry's room, the first one on the left up the stairs.

The first time he'd been in here, for some reason, he'd assumed girls were neat and tidy, but what he'd seen inside the mechanic's bedroom blew that mental image out of the water. But after finally seeing where she lived and thinking about her ways, it looked exactly as he would have pictured her room. Tools, half assembled automail, and machines scattered the floor. Books lined two cases flanking a desk that seemed to double as another workbench, a stool set before it. Her bed was a mess, which reminded him of his bunk back in Central, along with the laundry hanging off the bedposts like banners. There were even tools under the sheets too, one particularly large wrench by her pillow. He snickered upon seeing it, trying hard not to think about her sleeping with her tools more often than she slept with him. Somehow, he couldn't be jealous of a wrench for lying next to Winry.

It was bright outside, the light spilling in from the glass doors across the room that lead out onto the second floor balcony. He shoved his suitcase under the bed, and heard it clunk against more metal. Why didn't that surprise him? Rolling his eyes, Ed dropped his pack nearby, shoved his gloves into his coat pocket, and pulled off his red overcoat and jacket before trying to find a place to put them. There was an armoire next to a dresser, both of which were open and stuffed with unsorted clothes as he looked through them. He actually remembered some of the dresses stuck to the back of the racks, along with most of her work clothes, the lavender jumpsuit sticking out. Grumbling at Winry's apparent lack of organization, he started pulling the laundry off of her bed to hang his clothes there.

It was with growing fascination that he discovered that there was a weird sense of order to the otherwise seemingly chaotic choices she made in stashing her worn clothes. He had pulled three nightgowns off the bedpost, two practical cotton pieces with a bit of lace, and one that was nothing by a slip of white silk. He hadn't seen anything like them on the blonde since the first night he'd snuck into her room. She'd stopped wearing clothes at night when he was around after that. When he laid them on the end of the bed, Ed found where her intimate pieces went as he held up a white satin bra. His eyebrows shot up, fascinated by it. If he had discovered these months ago, he probably would have been unnerved by the feminine lingerie, but now? Now he couldn't get the mental image of what Winry would look like in it out of his head.

As he put that one down, his hand touched a black pair of her panties, which brought a cocked grin to his face. He had to admit that he liked her better in black underwear. Ed ran his fingers over the cotton, and then lifted it up, examining this one too. It looked exactly like the pair she'd taken off the first time they'd . . . he groaned softly at that memory, still grinning. At this rate he'd turn into a damned pervert, but he couldn't help it as his metal thumb touched the crotch of them. In the back of his head, there was one thing that kept bugging him, something that he had to know. He glanced at the door, almost expecting Winry to walk through there any moment now. Despite the logical part of his mind telling him he was a damned fool, Edward lifted the panties to just under his nose and sniffed them. His feet shuffled on the floor, suddenly feeling uncomfortable as he knew the scent. They definitely smelled like her. He dropped the panties onto the bed before he got caught with them, and shook his head to clear it from his dirty thoughts, "She's going to kill me if I keep snooping around."

Grumbling still, Ed pulled his pocket watch out, and moved away from the tempting underwear to put it on the night stand. He didn't pay attention to the open drawer when he put the watch down. Yet, as he turned back towards his pack, a piece of metal in it caught his eyes, and it made him curious. But this was Winry after all, she kept bits of machines and mail every where. So why was it curious that she kept another hunk of junk in the drawer by her bed? Maybe it was a new piece to throw at him. Ed smirked at that thought and let his inquisitiveness get the better of him, opening the drawer more to see what it was. Upon seeing it, he suddenly wished he wasn't so damned curious.

It looked like . . . what was the word Havoc said once when the Colonel and the Lieutenant were out of the office? A dildo? Maybe, only this one was entirely metal. Hell, it looked like automail. Ed went bright red. Where in hell did Winry get one?! But the answer to that one was obvious, as he could see a signature etched into the base of it. "Damn . . . she made this?" he wondered out loud, picking it up, if only to confirm that it was her name in her hand writing, "She has must have a lot of free time on her hands . . ."

His nose scrunched up in distaste, a bit insulted that she felt compelled to make something that was a substitute for him. Was this a message? Should he be worried? Jealous? Well, this certainly was more a worthy opponent than a wrench. There was a pang of jealousy in his chest geared towards the metal rod, idly wondering if it was better for her needs than him. It also looked bigger than him too. "Damnit! I'm not that short!" he yelled to himself, trying to keep it under his breath, "No, it's not possible, she-!"

Ed stopped a moment in his building tirade as he noticed his grip on the metal member, his mind choosing then to insert a picture in his head of what it looked like when he'd touched himself. As he realized that he and the metal counterpart were really the same size, the alchemist's hand sprung open, and he dropped it as if it were live fire. There was a clunk as it hit the wooden floor, and he cursed, "Shit."

He didn't hear anything from downstairs as he picked it up to indicate that she was coming up, so he let out the breath he'd been holding. Ed slumped down onto her bed, not caring that he was sitting on another wrench and two screwdrivers as he looked over Winry's toy closer. It looked like 'him' alright, which gave him a weird feeling, somewhere between flattered and frightened. It didn't explain at all why she'd chosen to make a metal stand in. He wasn't that bad, was he? And how the hell did it even work? It must have been able to move as there were too many parts for it to be just a piece of shaped metal. Looking around, he found two switches on the base and a slide controller, similar to the ones she had put in on his underarm to control the pain nerves. Smirking, Ed moved the slide first, and jumped when the metal vibrated. He turned that one off in a hurry. Next, he tried the one of the switches, and cursed when the metal, well, twitched, "God . . . do I twitch like that?"

When he shut it off, he hit the last switch, and eyed it with a start as the metal collapsed down to the size of his pocket watch. Ed blinked as it rested in his hand, "That's . . . convenient."

Before he could wonder too long, he heard a loud creak of wood from out in the hall, followed by the sound of bare feet on the floor. Winry. He cursed again, knowing he was about to be caught, and shot up to his feet. The bedroom door opened as he was turned to put the contraption back, and he jumped to face her, hiding his hands behind his back. She blinked at him, her head tilted to the side as he was obviously startled, "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, fine," Ed lied, trying not to sweat, blush, or otherwise ruin it aside from grinning, "Just putting some stuff away."

"You're staying for the whole week, right? I thought you'd be anxious to get back?" she asked as she crossed the room to the bed, grabbing at the pile of laundry, "And sorry for the mess, it was kind of spur of the moment to decide to put you up in here with me."

She blushed slightly, looking nervous herself as she tried to straighten things up. Ed cleared his throat, trying to get rid of his own nervousness, and he slipped the metal contraption into his back pocket while pushing the drawer closed. "It's ok, Winry," he said as he moved to join her by the bed, "It's . . . nice to take a break every once in a while, and I don't mind the mess, even if it makes me wonder why you even bother with the workroom downstairs."

"More space," the blonde answered with a grin as she moved to deposit the collected garments into a wicker basket. He fidgeted as he put his coat and jacket on the bed post, very aware of the metal he was carrying with him. Winry grabbed more of the clothes lying around, dropping them once more into the basket for the laundry. Done with the last of them, she then looked at him from over her shoulder, bent over slightly with a smirk on her face, "You didn't snoop through my stuff, did you?"

"No, why do you ask?" Ed lied, his voice a little too high in pitch to hide his sudden nervousness. She giggled and pulled out the black pair of panties he had touched earlier, flinging them at him. They landed on his head, hanging off his bangs, as he was too stunned to remove them. Damn, he was caught. But at least she didn't catch what he had in his back pocket. "Because," she started to say with a sultry but teasing lilt on her voice, "These were on the bottom of the stack this morning, and now they were on top. You're very bad."

Edward gawked as she giggled, then scowled as his face went red, throwing the underwear back at her, "Then you shouldn't have left your underwear lying around! You're as bad as-!"

"You could just admit you liked looking at my underwear and save yourself some hot air."

He was about to yell even louder when he stopped and considered her words, grinning himself, "Alright, fine, I did, but it'd look even better if it was actually on you."

His grin got even wider as she turned pink all over, "Oh, Ed, that was . . . that was a very good line, but do save it till after I work on your arm a little?"

"Too distracting?" he asked, feeling rather pleased as he walked towards her. From the shift in Winry's blue eyes over him, he knew he very distracting to her at least. She stood still as Ed hugged her, just tall enough to put his head on her shoulder even if the rest of her body fit comfortably against his. He tilted his head to kiss the side of her neck then craned up to her earlobe, his lips playing with the ear-cuff there. She moaned softly and squirmed in his arms, but didn't break free. Straining, his tongue slid up the edge of her ear, flicking the metal hoops she wore. Winry moaned a little too loudly for her liking when she still had work to do. Damn him for being so good, so close, and so distracting! Goofing off with the bed so near by was too tempting, but she squashed it, pulling away finally. "Later, please?" she asked, trying to keep her knees from knocking together as she brushed past him.

Ed nodded, disappointed yet again, "So, what tortures do you have in store for me this time?"

* * *

Fifteen minutes later, he was sitting on Winry's workbench as she was placing a pile of tiny metal parts on the table, along with an array of her usual tools and odds and ends. This didn't look like 'routine maintenance'. Edward frowned, and decided to ask his potentially loaded question, "What do you intend to do to me now? You still haven't answered that, even when I asked you earlier."

A small smile spread over her face as she held up one of the parts to his eyes, "This is a touch receptor node, I plan to install them under the metal sheeting in your arm like I did last time during the overhaul, just this time I'm going to put in a lot of them and some new ones I've made."

Ed looked at her suspiciously. She'd been very keen since that overhaul to upgrade his touch sensitivity in the automail. He wouldn't have minded it so much . . . if he wasn't using his arm like a weapon. Didn't added touch sensitivity defeat the purpose of deadening his pain receptors? And didn't he already have pressure sensors so that he could feel his strength when touching something? It didn't make sense to him at all, but he wasn't the mechanic. "If you're sure . . . but I still don't get why I need it," he grumbled, leaning on his other arm.

Winry sighed, and placed her hand on his metal forearm. Ed didn't move, impassive to it, even if he knew she was touching him. She then did the same thing to his other arm, and he flinched.

"That is the effect I'm looking for," she explained, "In your installation, we connected all your nerves, not just motor controls like on earlier automail, which is why it still hurts when it's unplugged. Despite the nerve and pain controls, those nerves are still stimulated, but have no feedback output, nothing telling them what's touching you or vice versa. But . . . that also means you're, ahem, hardwired for your entire sense of touch despite missing the real connecting nerves, so . . . I want to correct all that. I've been working on these babies for three months. They're absolute genius. They'll feel the slightest brush on them because I upped their sensitivity, but they're devoid of the pain receptors, so no worries on the nerve control, I think. It's still theoretical, but I just need to mount them, and connect them into the wiring harnesses to see. Well, I need to do some maintenance too, change the oil in the ball joints and slides, clean since your automail is always dirty, maybe put more padding on the elbow since you keep knocking it. I could also-."

"Winry?"

"Huh?"

"You're speaking like I understood a word you just said," he deadpanned before grinning slightly. Usually he'd yell at her for these rambling explanations, but didn't this time. Maybe it was because part of him actually got all of what she said. Maybe it was because of the giddy, dreamy expression she got on her fact when she went through the laundry list of work. Either way, he somewhat understood. Winry always seemed to have his best interests in mind when it came to his automail, even if that made him a lab rat sometimes. And yet, he didn't seem to mind being her personal lab rat anymore. "Alright, fine," he said as he pulled back some of his sleeveless black shirt, "Have at it, just don't break anything."

* * *

Time seemed to drag by as Winry worked, the entire metal skin of his automail arm spread across the table. Ed sat on the workbench still, propped up against the wall with an alchemy book on his lap. His boots and socks were shucked on the floor in an effort to get more comfortable, and yet sitting on the hard wood and metal table was anything but. For her sake, though, he put up with it and stayed quiet. Normally during his visits, he would have been out with Al or reading in his room, but he actually wanted to be near her as she worked. Since the overhaul, he learned to like watching the blonde work, noticing the little things he didn't see before.

Certain things about the way Winry worked were adorably cute. She'd probably bean him with twenty wrenches if he told her that, but it was. Her tongue always stuck out the side of her mouth when she had to use brute force on a piece of metal. She also made this little whine in the back of her throat when she came to a problem that startled him each and every time, as she sounded so disheartened. She didn't like moving away from her work either. When she needed something, she just stretched for it. That did the most interesting things to her clothes. He also couldn't help but notice how she stopped every fifteen minutes to wipe the sweat off of her brow, like clockwork. Even with her hair tied back and up in that stupid bandana, she still wiped her forehead even if she'd barely broken a sweat. And every five minutes for the first hour she'd asked him if he was bored. Again, it was just like clockwork. In truth, he was more amused watching her than reading his book.

He grinned when she put down the soldering iron and stretched with a cat-like arch to her back. She looked almost indecent moving like that in just denim shorts, a black tube top, and a thin white shirt left hanging open after he'd undone the knot holding it closed earlier. Ed shifted as he watched, well aware that he was still carrying her new toy in his back pocket. He should have slipped it back into her nightstand when he had a chance to go grab his books, but he didn't. That was probably because he knew that if he didn't confront her about it, he'd always wonder what it meant. "I'm done," she said, and he snapped out of his thoughts, nodding.

He put the book aside and laid down in front of her once the parts were moved. Not missing a beat, she began to put the pieces of his arm back together, both of them falling back into silence. It had to take her at least half an hour to reassemble it all as he fidgeted. It always felt weird when she worked like this, all the senses in his arm turned off but the motor controls still on, numb. It made him want to twitch something fierce. Each time he moved and she messed up earned him a poke in the ribs, which in time made him move just to spite her, and to make her touch him. Winry must have caught onto the game by the tenth time she poked him in a handful of minutes, this time bringing a wrench down onto his stomach. Afterwards, no matter how much he had groaned, he didn't stop grinning when her hand twitched again for the wrench.

When the last piece was wired in and attached, she hit the switch for the nerves in his underarm. It always was a small jolt when they were turned on or off, but since that installation, he was grateful. It was less painful than disconnecting his limbs, that was for sure, and as an added bonus, he didn't have to take them off to get repaired. That had been her theory on it when she'd first put them in, but since she'd invented them, she didn't know for sure. No one ever knew for sure with Winry's inventions, and apparently hard-wiring all of the nerves directly was an unexplored realm in automail science. While the overhaul had been the first test of that, this tune up had proved that short of annihilating his limbs, he'd never have to disconnect again to get repaired. He flexed his fingers again when the small shock wore off, and Winry gave a quiet victory cheer, patting his newly assembled arm without thinking. Ed jumped at the contact when he actually, well, felt it, nearly knocking into her, "What the-?!"

She giggled, an impish grin on her face when her whole hand stopped patting him to use her fingers instead. The alchemist stared at her but flinched each time the tips of her fingers touched the metal. It honestly felt like she was touching a real arm the way he reacted to it. Edward snagged her wrist in his grip before she could feel him again, more startled than angry even if the anger in his voice showed the most, "What did you do to me?!"

"I told you, touch sensitivity," Winry explained as she pulled out of his grasp, "Too sensitive?"

"But it felt real . . . like I had my arm back."

"That's the point. You'll get used to it in time, but I should do some tests to calibrate it, and to make sure the additional feedback hasn't trigged the pain receptors too," Winry said as her blue eyes drifted over lovingly her latest masterpiece. Tests? Who said anything about tests? Ed blinked, suddenly nervous, "What kind of tests?"

Another impish grin graced the blonde's lips, and he dimly wondered if that grin wasn't more predatory than before, or if he was imagining it, "You'll like these tests, just tell me what you feel."

Ed wasn't so sure of that as he sat up and waited for whatever this test was. He was just about to ask her what she intended to do when she touched his metal shoulder. Her fingers were so light that he jumped, knowing that if it was real skin, he would have had goose-bumps. Winry's eyes locked with his and she smiled, her touch turning a little firmer as he relaxed, "And?"

"I felt it."

Her hand slid down over his bicep with a creeping sensation riding up his back as he shifted, suddenly uncomfortable, "And that?"

"N-Not bad," he tried to say while keeping from shuddering. Her smile didn't dim at all, nor did her eyes leave his as she touched his elbow while her other hand touched his forearm and wrist. Ed jumped again, his toes curling as he tucked his feet back. She pinched something in the metal plate over his elbow, but it didn't cause a reaction as he kept staring at her, "That was suppose to hurt normally, nothing?"

"Nothing."

"Looks like you pass then," Winry said with a smile, holding his automail hand. She didn't know why she did it, maybe it was because she was just so darned pleased, but she tugged his hand up to her lips and brushed them over his knuckles. Ed didn't jump this time, but his mouth dropped wide open. She kissed the small joints then grinned at him, her teeth grazing one of his fingers. The blonde then bent to her head to nuzzle the back of his hand with her cheek, not minding the cool, unforgiving metal at all. And Edward felt every bit of it, his jaw still slack. Winry let go of his fingers, but he didn't pull away as she turned his wrist till his palm was on her cheek. With a soft groan, the pad of his metal thumb brushed her lower lip when they parted in a gentle gasp. Just when he had come to the crease of her mouth, she bent her head and took the metal part between her lips.

The spark of feeling her sucking on Ed's finger shot straight down into his crotch, making him groan louder. Before he knew it, she had pulled away, grabbing onto his wrist, and had taken his index finger into her mouth. He shifted uncomfortably on the workbench as his pants felt more constricted, watching her closely all the same. It felt so close to reality that he almost swore he could feel the wetness of her tongue licking the underside too. She slowly pulled off of him, sucking tightly till her mouth released his finger with a moist pop. Pleased with herself, Winry grinned at him, liking the growing fire in his golden eyes, "How do you feel?"

"Hard," Ed grounded out between his clenched teeth as he abruptly pulled her towards him. She wasn't even given a chance to wonder what he had meant when she felt it pulse through the crotch of pants and against the front of her shorts. The girl gasped, and he took that advantage to capture her lips before she resisted him again. Winry melted into the kiss, moaning as his tongue pushed forcefully into her slack mouth. Her arms were trapped to his chest, his breath shuddering under her fingers when he pulled back, asking breathlessly, "Work time over?"

"Yes," she replied then kissed him again. His arms on her waist tightened, sliding up the back of her shirt. She was sure he was going to pull her tube top down till his metal fingers kneaded into the muscles of her back instead. Edward's lips pulled away and dropped to her throat, nibbling on her skin as she panted. Her hands yanked on his braid and shirt, squirming against him as she could feel every definition in his body clench under his black clothes. If he held her any closer, she would have been behind him instead. He was desperate, or at least his hands were as he slipped her shirt down her shoulders, but didn't pull it off. Was he that easily turned on by her sucking on his automail fingers, or just anxious? Winry went with anxious as his lips came down on hers again, his hands on her butt pushing her against him. There was no mistaking that lump in his pants as he rubbed against her. Suddenly, she was rather anxious herself.

Winry tried to climb up onto the workbench on top of him, but his legs pinned her, wrapped over the back of hers. She gave a loud moan as his hands each squeezed a cheek, deciding to retaliate as she grabbed at his waist. Before Ed could stop her, the blonde's hands had slipped down to his rear, groping him in return. The only problem was that she didn't just grab flesh. Her lips ripped away from his when her hand found a bulge in his back pocket, too odd in shape to be his watch. "What is that?" Winry asked, ignoring his roaming hands completely.

"Nothing important," Edward replied, trying to distract her from it as he kissed along her ear. That wasn't the answer she was looking for. She dug into the pocket, pulling out something metallic, and then froze when she recognized it. "Oh my god," she swore, turning bright red, "How did you get this?!"

By now, with her thoroughly preoccupied with the metal toy in her hands, Ed gave up, and reluctantly let his tight grip on her body go, "How do you think I got it? I found it in your room."

"I knew it! You didn't just scope out just my underwear, but this thing too!" there was only one logical label for what he'd done, "Pervert!"

"I'm not the one who made it, Mrs. Pervert!" Ed shouted back as he grabbed it from her, "It's the same size as me, admit it, and you even signed the damned thing!"

"Wait . . . Mrs. Pervert!? When did we get married!?" she screeched, her face nearly bordering on purple. The same color flooded the alchemist cheeks, gawking and trying to come up with an answer that wasn't forth coming. He hadn't meant it like that at all. "It was an insult, Winry! You're missing the point! You made a metal-."

"Automail!"

"That's even worse! And it's my size too! What did you do? Take my measurements?!"

"So what if it is?! It's not like I had anything else to go off of, so I went with my memory!" she yelled, still red as she tried to take it back, only to have him jerk it away from her as she growled, "Give it back, Ed!"

"You memorized that?! And you called me the pervert!" he accused her, grinning ridiculously as she was caught, "No, not till you tell me why you made it!"

"Like hell! I don't have to tell you anything, it's mine! So give it back!" Winry screeched as she dove against him to take it back, only to fail when he held it high in the air. For being so short, he certainly could stretch far. He pushed her back, gripping her shoulder till she wiggled free, and leaped up. The weight of her body collided with his chest, knocking him down. She climbed onto him, reaching for the outstretched arm that held the toy. The mechanic might have succeeded if Edward hadn't chosen to drop it off the edge of the table. She screamed at the metal clunked on the floor, and tried to get off of him, only to find his arms pinning her to his chest again. "Lemme go!" she yelled, fighting him, "If it's broken, I swear I'll-!"

She flailed at him and wiggled, trying to break his hug on her torso, even if she had to smack him to do it. Ed growled as her rubbing against him was very distracting in his still aroused state, when he should have been worried over her small fists or the proximity of her tools. Her feet kicked, but given that they connected with nothing but air, it didn't do any good. His arms wouldn't budge either. She stopped fighting a moment, panting, "Let me go."

"No," Ed ground out between his gritted teeth, "Not till you tell me why you made that thing."

There was a sound in his voice that for a moment made her wonder. Surely she was just imagining that she heard that, right? She must have been tired from the fighting. And yet, Winry knew she had heard it, and it made her grin, "Jealous?"

"Jealous? Over a chunk of metal you made? Yeah, right, and you didn't answer my question," he said sarcastically, glaring at her. Winry's blue eyes shot back at him, a sadistic gleam in them as something deeply acidic danced on the tip of her tongue. It would serve him right if he was jealous, why else would he be carrying it around with him? And, well, she was embarrassed. She didn't want him to ever find it. But he had, and she was still flushed bright red about it. It would serve him right. Her eyes hardened, "I assumed you would be since it's been between my legs more often than-."

She was cut out by the look of fury in his golden eyes, the one he only seemed to get with the short jokes. Maybe she'd hit a little too deep. Before she could wonder about it though, he brought his metal hand down across her backside, the slap resounding through her body as she yelped and unconsciously ground against him. "Edward?!" she yelped, the sting biting into her skin, "That hurt, you ass! God, I'm sorry!"

That brought a grin to his face, only inciting Winry more, "Oh, very funny, now would you let me-!"

"No, not till you tell me why," he demanded as she struggled, ignoring him. He slapped her back side again, but not as hard, eliciting another yelp along with a glare. She still moved the same though, her hips digging into his, and he had a fight down a groan. Spanking Winry had felt good, and in more places than one, a tingle growing in his metal hand. It was a creeping sensation that lit a spark in Edward's mind along with the rest of his body. With a start, he realized he liked hitting her butt. He didn't like hitting people, especially girls, but . . . this was vastly different from fighting someone, given the way she was pressed against him. Maybe he was turning into a pervert, but maybe he wasn't the only one affected by it as his eyes swept over her.

She was bright red still as he waited for an answer, the color seeping over the rest of her skin. There was something her blue eyes that excited him, anger, embarrassment, a tinge of lust, and hidden deep, a small fear. What was she afraid of? That she liked the spanking? Or did it have to do with that his question? Was she afraid to tell him? Now he really wanted to know. The more he stared the more nervous Winry seemed to get, taking it out by fighting against him once again. "I'm telling you nothing, now let me-!" she protested before he cut her off with another jolting spank.

She jumped again, giving a small howl of pain as her lips quivered, "I-!" her face then hardened in determined resistance, "Do that again, and I swear I'll-!"

"You asked for it," Ed said as he released her long enough to grab her wrists, twisting her arms behind her back as she kicked violently. He was stronger than her, which was too bad for her as he kept her brawling manageable. The young alchemist wiggled out from under her, keeping her pressed face down on the workbench as he sat up. She grunted in protest but had stopped kicking, as she was worn out; and partially curious at what he intended to do to her. This was utterly humiliating, and foolish, and ridiculous, but then why did she keep blushing deeper shades of red when he had smacked her? One hand still pinning her wrists together, he pulled her hips into his lap as her legs dangled off the edge of the table. Whatever he planned to do, it was to her upturned rump, and that made Winry squirm a little stronger. Not this again. "Ed?" she tried cautiously, "Said I was sorry."

"Sorry doesn't sound like an answer."

"But-," her protest was cut off when he leaned over her body to pin her to his legs as his hand dug underneath her hips. His fingers pried open the button fly of her shorts, and the blonde gasped. Ed pulled the fabric down, and she panicked, kicking wildly again even if it meant falling off the table. But when his finger traced the band of her panties around her legs, Winry froze, whimpering when the fight in her died. "Blue . . ." he muttered, touching the thin fabric.

In fact, they were pale baby blue, which made her face turn almost purple from holding her breath as he looked at them. Him and his fixation with her underwear. She relaxed into his lap, shuddering as one metal finger traced along her crack, dipping downwards. It wasn't so bad, maybe, it wasn't like he had slapped her butt, again. But as soon as that thought crossed her mind he brought his hand down on her rear, making her pop up with a yelp. "Damn it, Ed! Why are you spanking me over this!?" Winry yelled as she tried again in vain to get free, "I am not that little!"

Her protests were cut off by another slap and a yelp. "Answer the question," he said, and she swore she could hear his teeth clench.

"N-No!" she said, not about to give in, even if it felt . . . weird. It didn't exactly hurt, it just stung as her hips ground into his involuntarily with the next slap. He'd stopped asking after that, not that she could find words to answer him with. By the third, or was it fifth, spank, she realized what it was she was rubbing into each one. Did he? No . . . but sure enough, after the next spank to which she shifted against him, she was sure she'd felt the bulge in his pants straining under her hips. The blush on her skin deepened enough to match the burning red spots on her ass.

Ed was actually getting off on this. Her thoughts were cut off by the next slap, but this time she wiggled with it, and felt him shudder under her. Winry shuddered as well when his hand stayed and gave the stinging skin a mild squeeze, the cool metal taking away some of the burn. He was a pervert, but maybe they both were when instead of yelping on the next strike, she whimpered. It was a struggle not to like it as the hard slaps softened into lighter smacks, each one followed by the caress of his automail.

With start, Winry realized she's long stopped whimpering or yelping but moaned as she laid sprawled over his lap and the table. She'd forgotten all about him hitting her, or the stupid question of his, focusing instead on how it felt. Her continued resistance and squirming was a front, there only to prolong this . . . something. With another smack and a thrust of her turned hips over his, she realized the word she was looking for was foreplay. Yup, this was definitely a twisted form of foreplay, maybe deservedly so, and if he was hard because of it, it was useless for her to pretend that she wasn't growing wet. Instead of moaning on the next spank, she groaned. Ed finally stopped completely as she wiggled, freeing her hands while he still held her in his lap by pressing on her waist, "Now, why did you make it? Or do I have to spank you more?"

The blonde groaned a little hoarser, the shreds of her false resistance still intact along with a growing need to find out what he'd do next. "Do your worse, I'm not telling," Winry said breathlessly, smiling to herself, knowing he couldn't see it.

Ed growled, and for a moment, he really wanted to make it hurt this time, but then his hand moved between her legs. It must have had a damned perverted mind of its own. Somewhere in his spanking of her, the importance of the question was lost, replaced with the burning desire to make her squirm and writhe against him. It was almost as bad as his desire to take her, the potency of it drumming through his blood. His hand pushed her legs apart and brushed down the blue cotton, coming to her center. Winry gasped when his fingers touched there, the sensation entirely too gentle and sudden, her legs curling in the air to relieve some of the tension. He started to rub those lips through the material, parting them with his knuckles as he already found it moist. She moaned, her hips unconsciously moving with his hand in a steady rhythm. It then clicked in his head that she was wet before he'd even touched her, bringing a devilish grin to his face. The girl dug into the table, the heat growing across her skin along with a thin sheet of sweat.

As his thumb moved across her engorged clit through the cloth, Winry bucked, her voice rising as she tried to grind her hips against him. The pain in her ass was gone, replaced with the burning need to bury herself against the metal hand manipulating her. If it wasn't for the fact that it was cooler than flesh, and harder, she could have sworn it was his real one doing that to her. His free hand moved under her panties, touching slick skin before thrusting two fingers at once into her. She cried out, her body arching down into his lap as she rocked with the movement. Her panties were yanked down completely, hanging round her knees before sliding off as she kicked. When the metal touched her naked clit, she shuddered powerfully, her senses flooded with release as she moaned his name. Under her, Ed felt it when her walls tightened over his fingers, trying to pull them deeper as her body clenched.

Once it passed, she collapsed weakly in his lap with a moan, all too aware that she was the only one to get satisfaction out of that, or at least a release. How he could sit there and be as hard as a rock was one thing she didn't understand about men. Didn't it hurt? Ok, hurt wasn't the right word, but he must have been half-mad with pent up frustration. She could feel it in his heavy breath, his abdomen shuddering against her, and in the sweat she could feel through his clothes, and smell heavy in the air along with the sex. Or maybe she was the one sweating like mad.

She was half contemplating a shower when Ed finally peeled the white shirt down her arms and tossed it aside. He then pulled her hair free of the bandana and the tie. The blonde length of it fell across her back, but she didn't move, not even when she felt his hand run up the back of her neck to gather in the pale tresses. She really didn't want to move. A metal knuckle brushed the hoops of her earring and she moaned, letting him play with her some more if she didn't have to move.

But Ed gripped her shoulder and she finally moved again, stretching before sitting up with some difficulty. Her legs were parted on either side of his, straddling his hips as Edward looked up at her, but her blue eyes couldn't focus, and neither could her head. Where were they? It took her a dazed moment to realize what she was sitting on and how clothed they still were. Winry pulled her tube top up and off, as her breasts had come free of it regardless. His gold eyes watched, mesmerized by the sight, before straining up to kiss her. He grumbled into her lips, and she dimly recognized it somewhere along the lines of 'too short' but she didn't care about his opinion on his height as she returned it, her arms wrapped over his neck.

Her fingers meshed into his braid, destroying it enough that he didn't complain when she tugged the tie out. His metal arm moved through the fall of her pale blonde hair to touch her back, drifting down towards the small of it to pull her against him. Winry sat down on Ed's lap fully and he groaned into her lips, fidgeting in anxiousness again. She didn't want to stop now, and probably wouldn't have, if he would have kept his mouth shut when he pulled away, "Still didn't answer my question at all."

Question!? Question! Him and that damned question!

Winry felt her blood go cold, turned off by his persistence when it was none of his damned business what she did. And even then, couldn't he just get it? She made it of him and no one else. That alone should have been telling of how much she wanted him. How obvious did she have to make her reasons? For an alchemistic genius, sometimes he was dense as a rock. And yet, she still loved him for all his stubborn, egotistical, ignorant ways. He just made it frustrating beyond belief sometimes. Instead of being completely let down, the mechanic used her growing anger to form a plan to answer him once and for all.

She growled and pushed Ed down on the table, pressed on top when his back hit the wood. Her kisses were hard and demanding, nearly bruising their lips, but he didn't complain, even when she almost bit his lower lip as she nibbled on it. She grabbed his black shirt and started to pull it up, his arms automatically rising up so she could take it off of him. And yet as soon as the fabric was at his wrists, she tightened it, and looped the shirt into a knot, effectively tying his hands together. It was rather funny, as Ed stopped mid-groan when he realized that he was now bound, "What the-?"

"I'm answering your question," Winry said as she leaned over him, using one of her heavier toolboxes to keep his arms pinned when he tried to yank away from her grasp, "And torturing you, consider it payback."

His golden eyes went wide before he struggled. The blonde sat down on his abdomen, knocking the wind out of him. He groaned, barely, in both pain and pleasure. She pressed into him as she leaned over the edge of the table, ignoring Ed's increase in noise as her chest mashed against his. Winry came up again with her toy in hand, and he stopped moving. She hit a switch and the rod extended to its full length, which made the alchemist very nervous, "What are you planning to do with that?"

"Use it."

"On who?" Ed asked in dead seriousness, which made her giggle. And her giggle, in turn, made a knot of nervousness strangle his vocal cords. She slid down next him, curling against his side with the toy temporarily forgotten in favor of playing with his hair. Winry slid a golden lock of it around her fingers, twirling it back and forth as she mused out loud, "As tempting as it sounds, we lack the necessary equipment for that, nope. A private, hands on demonstration of this things functions and use is more in order I think."

She liked this entirely too much, which made Ed swallow hard on the lump in his throat. But then again, this wasn't exactly bad for him either as her fingers stopped playing around to slide down his chest, her nails raking his skin. He hit the back of his head on the table to keep from squirming when her hand traced along his belt. A silent prayer went through his head, pleading with her to take off the rest of his clothes, but Winry didn't, sitting up instead. She leaned on top of him again, the curve of her body just grazing his. He tried to move, but her legs hooked on his thighs, pinning him completely. The metal toy was in her hands again, his eyes glued to it as she slid it down between them. "Paying attention?" she asked as the tip of it moved through the pale nest of hairs covering her folds.

No, he wasn't paying attention to what she said. The sight of her with a metal copy of him ready to be plunged between her legs was much too distracting. Why didn't he wear looser pants? It was downright painful after all the build up as he squirmed, trying to relieve some of the ache. Winry bit her lips, slowly pushing the metal into her with a low moan. His bound hands clenched, practically feeling it despite the small but obscenely annoying space between them. Her fingers flicked the switches again, and she moaned louder. Ed moaned too, wanting to look away, but finding that he couldn't. Her head rolled back, the metal pressing in deeply, and he thought his eyes would pop up. She gave a weak moan, the noise vibrating through him as much as the toy vibrated with her shuddering. Did she shudder like that when he did it?

Oh how he wished he'd kept his mouth shut now. Or that he was that piece of intruding mechanical monstrosity whipped up by the overly stimulated imagination of the little grease monkey writhing above him. She looked gorgeous like this, enthralled, and dirty, still bearing oil smudges all over her skin and soaked with perspiration, her hair clinging to absolutely everything. He wanted to touch her, but couldn't. It wasn't even him she was writhing for. Fuck. Winry was right. He was fucking jealous of her toy. She was right, as it boiled down to the fact that her little toy had probably been with her more often than he had. She was his little grease monkey, damn it, and there was no way he was going to compete with spare parts!

The girl didn't notice Ed's intense stare or his squirming at all, her body moving over him as if it were his doing and not the toy's. His hips flexed up, desperate to touch her, but her legs held him down fast as he cried out in frustration. But, her breathless voice in his ear made him stop, for once concentrating on what he was hearing instead of what he saw, "The reason I made it wasn't to replace you, but because I can't get enough of you."

In Edward's very short sexual history, that was the sexiest thing he'd ever heard.

It took all the strength he had to lift himself up high enough off the table to kiss her. Winry's body came crashing down, the suddenness of it chasing away his thoughts of anything but her lips on his and the vibrations of that damned toy. He fought against the knot around his hands, but apparently black cotton was stronger than automail. As soon as her hips rolled on top of his, he no longer had too much of a reason to fight. With the metal pressed deeply inside her, she started rubbing her body along Edward's, the vibrations carrying though his pants. She could feel his arms, both metal and flesh, tighten with each grind, like he was going to break apart under her, or throw her off as his hips surged up to meet hers. Her legs released his as his fighting became too much and he moved under her, as desperate and as close as he could be for not . . . well . . .

Ed's mouth pulled away, giving the loudest cry she'd ever heard even if it was half strangled in her neck and hair. As he convulsed violently, Winry wondered if she'd broken him, missing how his hips pumped strongly up into hers. Well, not missing, just not paying attention to it as she felt the edge of another release as well. Her cry joined his moments later, shaking with the vibrations as they swelled and rolled over her. The power of the release turned her world into nothing but white as her eyes closed, washing away everything except the fire that consumed her. Her body gave one final arch against his and collapsed, spent despite the occasional twitch, proof that her toy was still very much deep inside her. She moved, slowly, and pulled it out, letting the moving metal fall to the table with a clink. Winry collapsed again, and moaned into Edward's neck, realizing the damned thing was louder than their breathing. "Next upgrade, that buzzing has to stop . . ." she breathed, her eyes closed shut.

Ed groaned, and she took that as agreeing. She wanted to stay like this, naked on top of him, feeling completely icky, but completely happy as well. They stayed like that, at least until the buzzing got too obnoxious to be ignored anymore. Winry moved to turn it off till Ed finally spoke, "Leave it."

She wasn't about to argue, snuggling against him as he groaned again. It took her a full minute in the haziness to realize he as still dressed, partially. "Are you-? Did you?" she asked, watching a deep crimson shade spread over Ed's body.

"I think I did . . ." he said, his voice so small she didn't think she heard him right. But it was hard not to grin at his embarrassment, the look on her face making him turn away with another groan as she giggled. "This is so not funny," he said, as even the tips of his ears turned red, "I have to clean up down there, and I hate laundry . . . think you can untie me now?"

"I like you like this."

Another groan, "You would, sadist."

"Look who's talking, pervert, my ass is probably as red as your face."

"Oh, yeah, and how wet were you getting from that?" He said with a grin, relishing it as she turned bright red as well. Winry huffed, stammering for an answer till she grinned as well. "And how hard did you get from spanking me?" she whispered into his ears, which were burning.

His grin turned from impish to stupid, his intelligence almost dripping away back into his crotch with a touch of renewed heat. She did that to him way too easily after how tired he felt. "We might as well both admit it, we both liked it," he confessed and she nodded, snuggling against him with a soft sigh.

Ed pulled on his bonds again and sighed as well. He wanted to put his arm around her too, but feeling her curled up around him would have to do. They went silent, the toy still buzzing, at least until Winry kicked it off the table. He chuckled, "I thought you liked that thing?"

"I do, just not when I have the real thing."

"So . . . you meant that then?"

Her immediate response was the most telling answer, a pink blush spreading over her cheeks that warmed his heart. "Yes . . ." she said finally, and softly, "But it wasn't just that I missed, you know."

Ed felt his heart clench for her, banging the back of his head once on the table. Just those words brought back the flood of fear he'd been agonizing over. How in the hell were they ever going to have a talk about the future when it scared him to pieces just thinking about it? A seed of regret was buried deep in his mind, one that said he shouldn't have let her do this to him so many months go, but he had. In his selfishness and stupidity, he'd let her in because he didn't want to be alone, because he wanted to be loved, and now . . . he'd probably break her heart. For a moment, something stung at the corner of his eyes, but he blinked it away, breathing deeply to calm down. He wasn't about to go down that road, not with her pressed so warmly against him, hugging his neck like she always belonged there. Winry looked up a moment and saw part of the troubled look in his golden eyes, and a glisten of water, "Are you alright?"

"Yeah," he lied, "Just thinking too much."

"Tell me."

"No," he said forcefully, perhaps too coldly as she flinched, but then he added, "Just not now, later."

She nodded, believing him, and he exhaled slowly, grateful. About a minute later, Winry reached up and finally untied his shirt from his wrists, letting him hold her as they rested, nearly falling asleep. He didn't know how much time had passed, but slowly he realized that they weren't just pressed together anymore, but sticking together. Regretfully, he peeled himself out from under her, having to fend off her protests by physically pushing her away. She clung all over him though as he sat up, refusing to be dislodged from him like a stubborn little kid. "Winry, you can't do this. I may be stronger than you, but I'm not strong enough to carry you to the shower," he said as she moaned, hugging him tighter, "And you're taller and weigh more."

He grunted as he was slugged in the shoulder. It was the truth after all. Slowly though, she pulled away, gingerly stepping down off the table. Ed watched her as she walked, naked, to pick up the toy and turn it off. She was wobbling slightly, and creeping along on her tip toes. A grin sprouted on his face, and he realized he'd probably lied again. He probably was strong enough to carry her, but maybe not to the shower. Jumping down from the table, he quickly undid his belt, and slid his pants and boxers down, ignoring the mess for now as he kicked them aside. Winry didn't even notice as he moved up behind her, suddenly pulling her into his arms. Seconds later, he swept her feet out from under her as she hugged him tightly. "Ed!" she screamed into his ear, "I thought you-!"

"We're taking a detour," he said carrying her in his arms as he quickly headed out of the workroom and down the hall to the stairs, "Showers can wait."

* * *

Eventually, they did make it to the showers, but not before utterly ruining Winry's bed first. And this time he got to throw the tools around, off of her bed. After that, they had finally dressed, cleaned up, and settled down in the kitchen for dinner. She cooked because she had insisted, especially upon seeing how long it took him to figure out what to make and what was where. Besides, for all his intelligence, he made a better, albeit grumbling, assistant than a cook. Al and Pinako came home before they had finished, as if on cue, which made Winry wonder. Her grandmother's knowing smirk also made her wonder. Out of all of them, it was Al's complete innocence that shattered the tension when he asked what they're done all afternoon.

Ed lied to his brother, something she didn't think he was capable of, "Nothing, Al, just getting fixed, still a little tired from it, so I think I'll turn in early after dinner, that ok?"

The armor suit nodded, and that was the end of it. After dinner, he went up the stairs first, and after helping clean the table, she followed him. But he wasn't in her room when she got there, and neither were his things. A jolt of anger went through her. After she told him where he was sleeping, and after everything else, Winry realized there was still a huge wall between them, one of his making that she'd thought she'd cracked. Apparently he was trying to rebuild it. It was something she didn't completely understand, and it made her even angrier. He was supposed to love her. She stormed down the hall, those very words on her lips when she opened the door to his room. Ed sat by his desk, turned towards the window and staring out of it. He didn't turn to her at all, or open his mouth. All she saw was his throat tightened as he swallowed something, followed by a shuddering breath, "I'm fine, I'll explain later."

Later.

Winry slowly backed away and pulled on the door to shut it, but before she saw him turn back to the desk and begin to write. She closed the door, and walked slowly back to her room, hanging her head in silent defeat. Later, she realized, could be a very long time when it came to Edward.

* * *

There was a scrape of something heavy on the wooden floor in the middle of the night, and Winry nearly bolted upright in the bed. She was instantly awake with fright, but relaxed as she saw a familiar pair of golden eyes that looked more like amber in the darkness. "Edward," she breathed with a sigh as she flopped back down, "What was that?"

"My suitcase."

"You're . . ." her throat tightened dangerously on that unspoken word, leaving.

"No, just moving back in."

She let out the breath she'd been holding and turned to watch him move around the room, fiddling with her drawers and placing a few things on the furniture. Finally, he pulled back her tangled sheets, and crawled next to her in the bed. As he slid beside her, it was with a start that she realized he was naked already, the intent clear in his eyes. That was as far as she got when he kissed her, melting away all her anger and questions.

He didn't just sleep with her, but made love to her in the moonless night. If she didn't know any better, she would have said it was apologetic, the way he moved within her, but she wished she knew what he apologizing for. Afterward, she drifted off to sleep again as he laid on top of her, his head nestled between her breasts as he bent over her. She didn't stay asleep though. It must have been early morning when she woke up again, as the sky was just starting to lighten outside with the pre-dawn haze. She quickly realized she was alone. Ed's suitcase was still by her bed, and his shoes and clothes were on the floor among her tools and projects.

Slowly, Winry sat up, clutching the sheet to her chest, and looked around completely. He was standing in the open doorway onto the second floor balcony around the house, naked for the world to see if they woke up at the crack of dawn. She had to bite her lips to keep from sighing. Despite how young he was, the automail, and being short, Edward Elric was still breath-taking, to her at least. There were hints at the man he would become in the way he held himself while leaning on the door way, the growing muscles in his body already toned into compact perfection, and she couldn't wait. Leaving the sheet behind, she climbed out of the bed, and walked over to join him. He looked up at her as she leaned on the opposite side of the door, her pose similar to his. A small smile trudged onto his lips, his eyes looking her over in the darkness, "Did I ever tell you you're beautiful?"

"No . . ."

"I just did," he said, and she smiled back, blushing slightly, "I love you."

She turned towards him when he said that, and for a moment thought she saw his eyes glisten before he reached up to wipe it away. Winry rushed into his arms, hugging him before he could think to refuse it, "I love you too."

Ed exhaled under her, and she could feel him tremble, "Winry, we . . . we need to talk."

"Wait, before you do," she said, gulping down her own rising nervousness as it threatened to burst through her beating heart, "Just let me say something, please?"

Her hand moved up to touch his cheek as their eyes locked, and he nodded. "I love you, but you have to stop doing this," she said, her blue eyes threatening to spill over too, "I saw the pain in your eyes this afternoon, tonight. I see it every time you look at Al or that watch, one mention of the Philosopher's Stone, or . . . or your mother, and you clamp up tighter than a rusted screw. I don't know what's troubling you, but well . . . tell me, I won't let you shut me out, I want to help you . . ."

"I . . ." he started to say before his eyes closed painfully, putting his head on her shoulder, "I'm sorry . . . some things I can't tell you, others I can. I don't like it either, but you've already helped me more than I can repay in my lifetime."

He cringed and shut up, making a frown cross her lips, "You're doing it again."

"I know . . ."

"Edward, please, tell me?"

Something seemed to crack in him, but before she could stop him, he slipped from her grip, and crashed down to his knees. His arms hugged her waist tightly as his face was pressed against her stomach, making her blush as well as worry, "Ed?"

It all came out in a rambling torrent before he could stop it, or even think about what he was saying, "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, I know don't deserve you, I wish I could put it all back the way it was but I can't, and I tried, but I can't, part of me doesn't want to, I don't want to lose you, or-," she felt his grip on her tighten as he went still and stopped, the next words barely above a whisper, "You know what could happen right, how close I've come to dying already?"

Winry's breath came out as if he'd just sucked it all from her lungs, that nervous knot back in her throat, "I . . . I've always known, I just never said anything, why else do I work so hard for you? I always thought that . . . you could die if I didn't do the best I could . . ."

"Thank you . . ."

"Is this why you're worried? That you could . . . die?"

He didn't move at her question or let go of her, but she could feel him relax, if only slightly, "Yes . . . I don't want to . . . leave you, Winry, but I may not have a choice."

"Yes, you do, you always have a choice, unless . . ." it took her a moment to realize it, his greatest weakness, the only thing he'd choose over her, "Unless it boiled down to living for me or dying for Al?"

Edward froze, a clammy cold sweat dripping down his back as he waiting for the axe to fall. That realization was like a slap across the face, so stupidly simple, but so profound. Why didn't she realize it before? Of course, his pursuit to restore his brother would trump everything, even his newfound love for her. Winry found herself sliding to the floor too, his arms coming up to her shoulders as he kissed her. She tried not to cry, but couldn't help it, tears streaming down her face as sobs wracked her body in the middle of the embrace. "I'm sorry . . ." was the only thing he could say when she weakly pulled away from his lips.

She looked up and realized he was crying too. The great, unstoppable Edward Elric was crying, even silently. Despite her sniffling, she kissed the fat, watery tears rolling down his face as they both calmed down. And yet, it still felt like a knife through her heart. "You're so stupid," Winry muttered, her arms over his neck, and she wondered which of them she meant.

A ghost of a smile crossed his face before fading into a frown as deep as hers. She sighed, hugging him tighter. This was so hard to deal with, even if it made everything make sense. He must have been so convinced of his own death that he tried to push her away. If she didn't want to comfort him so badly she could have smacked him. He really was stubborn sometimes. Winry sighed again, trembling herself. She didn't think she could be strong enough to be without him, permanently. But if this once she could be the stronger one, maybe he'd understand how she really felt, "No matter what happens, I still love you, I always will . . . we just need to take things as they come."

"Even if . . ."

"I said I love you, and I meant it, even if it makes me as big an idiot as you . . . whatever choices you make, whatever futures are ahead, I have you, for now at least, so . . . when whatever else comes, comes, I'll deal with it, till then . . ."

"I really don't deserve you."

"I know."

"I promise, I'll try not to make you worry anymore, and, I'll do everything I can, I'll come back to you, no matter what happens, just wait for me."

"Don't make promises too big, Ed, you sometimes can't help but break them."

"I know, but this is one worth keeping."

* * *

A week later, Edward sat in the Rockbell's kitchen across from Pinako, an envelope clutched in his hand. He'd written the first page that first night, then another draft each day he'd spent there till the single page had turned into three. He'd put a lot of thought into it, more so than any previous letter to Winry, and the old woman could see that deep down in his eyes as she stared at him. He looked like he did back at his mother's wake, quiet, lost, and thinking too damned much. Why did he always have to be so glum about everything, especially given what he was doing with her granddaughter? He certainly wasn't this dead the last visit, and not that first day a week ago when he'd bounded up her front steps.

It was too early to be thinking about that, just after dawn when he'd called this little meeting before his brother or Winry would be up and about the house. Den was curled under their feet, and her pipe was already in her hand and mouth, puffing away. "I'm sorry I woke you up, but . . ." he started, fidgeting in the chair.

"I know, you wanted this talk without people overhearing, so talk, young man," she grumbled.

He slid the envelope across the table and she picked it up, suddenly curious about its contents as she was about to open it. "Don't, it's for Winry to read," he said, his eyes drifting down, "Don't let her see it, not till you're sure . . . sure that I won't be coming back for repairs anymore."

She hated being right. There was enough fatalism in his voice that she knew he meant more like when he wouldn't be coming back period. He was too young to be thinking like that, but . . . "I take it this is your last will and testament then?"

His frown deepened, "You could put it like that . . ."

Hers deepened as well, "I understand, but it doesn't make me happy to think you're setting your affairs straight right now."

"I'm sorry, ma'am, but you've been in my life all these years. You know what could happen, what will happen if . . . if I keep doing what I'm doing. I don't want to be gone without her knowing exactly how I felt and why. Can you allow me that peace of mind?"

"I don't like it, but . . . you're right, I only wish my son and his wife had the forethought. You're growing up, perhaps too fast, but I cannot stop you."

"I know . . . so will you . . . ?"

"As I said, I don't like it, but I will, for Winry's sake, and part of me is glad you did this. It will be too hard on her if you are gone for good without some assurances . . . You do still intend to make her happy until such a time then?"

Ed slowly lowered his head, and she could see his thoughts ticking behind his eyes. Always logical, this could have been his way back out, and both of them know that. Suddenly, he looked up at the old woman squarely, the fierce determination there that she was used to seeing from him, nodding to her. Then it faltered, back into a frown that bordered on a pout, "I know I'll try the best I can not to make her cry, at least."

Slowly, Pinako smiled, removing the pipe from her mouth, "Then that, Edward Elric, is all I can ask of you."

* * *

The End . . . For Now. Storyline To Be Continued in Of Ballet and Bullets. 


End file.
